Spathiphyllum plant named ‘Florida Beauty’

ABSTRACT

A new Spathiphyllum plant named ‘Florida Beauty’ characterized by its large size and its large, elliptic, white spathes which are held well-above the foliage. The foliage of ‘Florida Beauty’ is dark-green, glossy and supple. Plants of ‘Florida Beauty’ are easy to grow and are tolerant of temperature extremes without damage to the foliage. The new cultivar is particularly well-adapted to, and durable in, indoor/interior scape conditions.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention comprises a new and distinct cultivar ofSpathiphyllum plant, botanically known as Spathiphyllum hybrid, andhereinafter referred to by the cultivar name ‘Florida Beauty’.

The new cultivar is the product of a breeding program carried out by theinventors, Ann E. Lamb, David R. Lilly and Randy L. Allamand. The newcultivar named ‘Florida Beauty’ is the result of a cross made in Apopka,Fla. in November of 1993. The female or seed parent was the cultivarSpathiphyllum ‘Lynise’ (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 6,145). The male parent wasa unique seedling, found among seedling-derived Spathiphyllum ‘MaunaLoa’, named ‘Vibrant’ (unpatented), which was selected and maintained bythe inventors and used only for breeding purposes.

The new cultivar named ‘Florida Beauty’ was discovered and selected bythe inventors from a group of seedlings of the stated cross inHomestead, Fla. on May 16, 1996. Propagation by tissue culture, inSebring, Fla., under the supervision of the inventors, was used toincrease the number of plants for evaluation and has demonstrated thestability of the combination of characteristics as herein described fromgeneration to generation.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The following traits have been repeatedly observed and are determined tobe basic characteristics of ‘Florida Beauty’ which in combinationdistinguish this Spathiphyllum as a new and distinct cultivar:

1. Plants are large, upright and ideally suited for pot sizes 25 cm orlarger;

2.Leaves are dark-green, glossy and leathery with a wavy margin. Theleaf blade is broad and textured;

3. Spathes are white, elliptic, cupped and held above the foliage onthick, sturdy peduncles; and

4. Plants are easy to grow and are tolerant of temperature extremes(108° F.-52° F.) without foliar damage.

‘Florida Beauty’ has not been observed under all possible environmentalconditions. The phenotype of the new cultivar may vary significantlywith variations in environment such as temperature, light intensity, anddaylength, without any change in genotype.

Of the commercial cultivars known to the present inventors, the mostsimilar in comparison to ‘Florida Beauty’ are the parental cultivar‘Lynise’ and the cultivar Spathiphyllum ‘Aziza’ (U.S. Plant patentapplication Ser. No. 09/586,604). In comparison to ‘Lynise’, ‘FloridaBeauty’ has pure white flowers while the flowers of ‘Lynise’ arecream-white in color. Plants of ‘Florida Beauty’ are larger than plantsof ‘Lynise’. The leaves of ‘Florida Beauty’ are darker-green, wider,shinier and thicker than the leaves of ‘Lynise’.

In comparison to ‘Aziza’, the inflorescence of ‘Florida Beauty’ is heldhigher above the foliage than the inflorescence of ‘Aziza’. The leavesof ‘Florida Beauty’ are supple and less rigid than the leaves of‘Aziza’. Plants of ‘Florida Beauty’ produce fewer side branches thanplants of ‘Aziza’.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying color photographic illustrations show typicalcharacteristics of a 12-month-old plant of ‘Florida Beauty’ grown in a25-cm pot initiated from two microcuttings obtained by tissue cultureand grown under appropriate growing conditions, with colors being asnearly true as possible with illustrations of this type.

Sheet 1 is a side view showing the inflorescence and foliage of ‘FloridaBeauty’.

Sheet 2 is a close-up view of the upper leaf surface.

Sheet 3 is a close-up view of the lower leaf surface.

DETAILED BOTANICAL DESCRIPTION

The following observations, measurements and values describe 12 monthold plants (3 month old liner and 9 month finishing time), finished in25 cm pots and grown in Homestead, Fla. under greenhouse conditionswhich closely approximate those generally used in horticulturalpractice. All color references are measured against The RoyalHorticultural Society (R.H.S.) Colour Chart. Colors are approximate ascolor depends on horticultural practices such as light level andfertilization rate, among others, without, however, any variance ingenotype.

Classification:

Commercial.—Spathiphyllum hybrid cv. ‘Florida Beauty’.

Parentage:

Male parent.—Selection of Spathiphyllum ‘Mauna Loa’ named ‘Vibrant’.

Female parent.—Spathiphyllum ‘Lynise’.

Propagation: Vegetative, by tissue culture or division.

Plant: Under appropriate growing conditions, plant attains a size ofapproximately 66 cm to 75 cm in height and approximately 85 cm to 98 cmin width.

Leaves:

Form.—The leaf blade is elliptic with a cuneate to obtuse base and acuspidate to acute apex which curves downward. The margins are entireand slightly wavy. The midrib is straight over approximately ⅔ thelength of the leaf and curved downward somewhat toward the leaf tip. Theleaves are moderately thick, leathery and supple. The leaf surface istextured and glossy.

Size.—Leaf blades are approximately 33 cm to 36 cm in length andapproximately 16.5 cm to 19 cm in width.

Petiole.—The petiole is approximately 40 cm to 44 cm in height from thebase of the petiole to the base of the leaf blade on primary shoots.Secondary shoots are smaller depending on the age of the shoot. Thepetiole is approximately 8 mm in diameter at the junction of thegeniculum and petiole sheath. The petiole below the geniculum isstraight.

Petiole sheath.—The petiole sheath is approximately 33 cm to 38 cm inlength and approximately 14 mm to 17 mm in width at the midpoint. Thetip of the petiole sheath is oblique and bluntly rounded. The petiolesheath terminates approximately 1 cm from the base of the geniculum, orat the base of the geniculum.

Geniculum.—The geniculum is approximately 6.0 cm to 7.0 cm in length andapproximately 1 cm in diameter. The color is greener than, but closestto, RHS 147B.

Veins.—Veins are sunken, and the leaf blade is convex between veins onthe upper surface giving the leaf a textured appearance. The midrib issunken. Well-defined primary veins radiate out from the midrib over thelength of the leaf. There are approximately 15 pairs of primary veins onthe leaf.

Color.—Leaf: Upper surface: RHS 139A. Lower surface: RHS 146B to RHS147B. Midrib: Upper surface: RHS 137A. Lower surface: RHS 146D. Petiole:Darker and greener than, but closest to, RHS 137A. Petiole sheath:Darker and greener than, but closest to, RHS 137A.

Inflorescence:

Immature.—The spathe is tightly rolled around the spadix and emergesfrom the petiole sheath. The spathe is fully open approximately at thetime the peduncle is fully elongated—approximately 95 cm to 101 cm abovethe soil surface, measured at the tallest point. The peduncle isapproximately 68 cm to 75 cm in length measured from the crown of theplant to the base of the spathe. It is approximately 8 mm in diametermeasured at the midpoint of the peduncle. The peduncle is darker andgreener than, but closest to, RHS 146B.

Mature.—Spathe: Size: The spathe is approximately 26.0 cm to 29 cm longand approximately 12.0 cm to 15.2 cm wide. Color: Fully open: Adaxialsurface: Pure white, RHS 155D, tinged with RHS 148D along the midrib.Abaxial surface: Pure white, RHS 155 D. Midrib (abaxial): Darker andgreener than, but closest to RHS 146B. Apex: RHS 146B. Faded: Adaxialsurface: RHS 155D streaked with RHS 146B. Abaxial surface: RHS 155Dstreaked with RHS 146B. Midrib: Darker than, but closest to, RHS 146B.Apex: RHS 146B.

Arrangement.—The spathe terminates as a straight peduncle which opensvertically above the leaves.

Shape.—The spathe is elliptic with a cuneate to obtuse base and an acuteor cuspidate twisted apex.

Flowering.—Depending on season, approximately 3 inflorescences will bepresent on plants; smaller, narrower blossoms may occur on less maturegrowth.

Lastingness of the individual inflorescence.—Spathes begin to changefrom pure white to white streaked with green after about 3 to 4 weeks,becoming almost entirely green after about 6 weeks. Cut flowers lastabout 7 days off the plant.

Floral organs:

Spadix.—Size: Approximately 12.5 cm in height and approximately 2 cm inwidth. Color: When the spathe unrolls, the spadix is yellow, RHS 19C,gradually changing to darker and greener than, but closest to, RHS 146Bas the flower fades. Stamens: Anthers and filaments are minute and notclearly visible. Pollen: RHS 158D. Pistil: RHS 19C in color, conical,protruding between the staminate flowers, fixed to the main axil. Thepistillate flowers extend approximately 3 mm beyond the staminateflowers.

Seeds.—Approximately 2 mm long, reniform in shape, light to medium browncolor. Surface texture of seed coat is pitted; each individual capsulecontains approximately 1 to 6 seeds. Depending on size and degree ofpollination, a single inflorescence can yield over 800 seeds.

Fruit.—Oblong to elliptic berry, 9 mm long, 8 mm wide, green RHS 146 Bwith yellow RHS 19 C when ripe.

Roots: Thick white roots with fine laterals.

Pest/disease resistance/susceptibility: Preventative disease and pestcontrol measures used to grow crops of ‘Florida Beauty’ are typical ofordinary commercial practice; ‘Florida Beauty’ has no particularsensitivity to common pests or pathogens.

We claim:
 1. A new and distinct cultivar of Spathiphyllum plant named‘Florida Beauty’, as illustrated and described.